


I'll Wear Your Ring

by whyamIalwaysLoislane (Whyamialwaysloislane)



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - No Hale Fire, Cause well it's derek, Childhood Friends, Childhood Sweethearts, Cute, Everyone Is Alive, Fluff, Literally unashamed fluff, M/M, Sappy Derek Hale, Sappy Ending, Song fic, dats this, imagine a bittersweet love song, it's just fluff, little angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 06:18:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12858573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whyamialwaysloislane/pseuds/whyamIalwaysLoislane
Summary: Derek remembered Stiles. He always would. He would remember him as the 10 year old that clutched his 13 year old hand as his mother went in for surgery. He would remember him as the 12 year old with tough eyes and a tight smile as the nurses shaved his head to match his moms. He would remember him as the 14 year old who clung to Derek’s side as Stiles Dad stepped out of the hospital room with a solemn expression. He’ll always remember Stiles face as Derek pressed his ring into his palm and gave him a small smile, a spoken promise to return and an unspoken plea to not forget him.12 years later, Derek’s back in Beacon Hills, with a flurry of ruined relationships behind him and a sister at his side. He did not expect to find Stiles here again, he expected even less that he’d find Stiles again, with that slip of silver hanging from his neck.





	I'll Wear Your Ring

**Author's Note:**

> Title from 'I'll Wear Your Ring' by Trixie Mattel  
> So life caught up with me hard core, but for some reason two years after my last fic, a country love song by a drag queen poked at some Sterek feelings and I ended up writing this in a night. So it's very unbeta'd, all mistakes are mine and mine alone and probably so dumb. I might continue this, but like no promises. This might be a new wave of writing, but like again, no promises. One day I'll finish everything I've started. One Day. (No Promises)  
> Hope you like this bundle of feelings and sap, my tenses are everywhere so read with caution.  
> Love, Megan.

“Hey,” Laura reached out and grabbed Derek’s hand, “aren’t you excited to be going home? It’s been so long!” She squeezed his fingers in hers and beamed.

Derek and Laura had lived on the east coast with their relatives in New York for over 10 years. Even with a restraining order, Kate was persistent so the safest bet for Derek was to move across the country. Leaving his family, his friends and Stiles behind. It had been long enough that the Argent's and the Hales could be business partners and Kate had ran into trouble with the police. It was well past safe to come home. Part of Derek wanted to stay in New York, in his city that loved him but didn’t care, but a bigger part wanted to be home, with his family. Maybe, to see Stiles again. 

 

“You’re worried about seeing him again aren’t you?” Laura sat back in her seat placing her hands on the table in between them. Derek gave a weak smile. “It’ll be okay. I know you didn’t stay in touch like you thought you would but you were never the stay in touch type. Both of you. You only ever spoke to each other in the hospital waiting room and you know how distant stiles got when Claudia passed.” Derek smiled weakly, remembering the gaunt Stiles who sat day by day in the hospital waiting room, cracking jokes with the nurses. The facade always fell when he was alone, the smile dropped and the sadness that his eyes held melted through his face. Nothing like the smiley kid he’d met when his mom had gone for her surgery.

“Yeah, I mean it has been 12 years.” He laughed, unsure whether he was happy about this or not. He wasn’t the same kid who left, the baby faced skinny buck toothed kid had morphed into the gruff bearded brick wall form he had now. New York had done him well.

"That is true. And come on we get to see everyone! It’s been ages, I wonder how big Anthony has gotten!” Laura grinned further, wriggling a bit in her seat.

“Are they meeting us at the station?” 

“I bloody well hope so, if 12 years away isn’t enough to get a bloody good welcome I don’t know what is!”

 

* * *

 

After the welcome back of the century, Derek tried to settle back into a home that was unfamiliar. His bedroom, per his request, had been repainted and redecorated. It felt alien but it felt better than walking into his old bedroom. He didn’t want the silver framed photo of Kate to beam back at him. Instead the desk had only a few framed family photos, ones of the kids, a few birthdays, and a wedding which Derek had attended in Kansas. It was nice and sweet, it mainly felt like a guest room. The only thing that stood out was the baseball cap that was perched on the bedside table. He ran his hands over the cap, before picking it up and flipping it over. He knew the name inside before the looked. Inside the rim of the cap scribbled in sharpie read:

>   ** _ ~~Mieczyslaw~~ Stiles Stilinski_**

“I didn’t want to throw it away. I got rid of all of her stuff. But I couldn’t throw him away, Derek.” Derek turned to find his mother leaning against his door. She smiled, wandering over to him and placing her hands on his. “He’s still here you know. Grew out that awful buzz cut, kept close to home, I don’t think he could have left Tom. He works at the cafe in town. Don’t leave it too late Derek. He’s too good to loose.” She touched his face and moved away from Derek and the hat. He ran his hands over lip of the hat and the embroidery. He remembered this hat, Stiles had begun wearing it after he first shaved his head. He loved matching his mom but found it hard to walk through school unnoticed; so Derek bought this hat during his break hour at the Surf Store in town. It was an absurd shade of blue and orange but Stiles had fallen in love with the goddamn thing the moment Derek placed it in his hands. Stiles had given it back after his mother died. He put the hat back in his hands and looked up, eyes red and swollen and just said; "I'm not embarrassed any more". Derek slid the hat onto his head, it was a bit snug but it sat well, squashing his ears down only slightly. 

_The cafe._

* * *

Beacon Hills only had one main cafe, that wasn't a Starbucks or another chain. It was a long serving place that housed a few old ladies and the local teens. It wasn't really a cafe, it was a Diner pretending to be a cafe. It was just that style of niche; it made sense that Stiles had ended up there. It had always sat between the bank and a clothes boutique that always swapped and changed. The town never changed, just the names. Everything else stayed the same, it was comforting in a weird sad way but in one that calmed Derek's nervous stomach as he climbed out of his car. He'd parked a few spaces up from the cafe on the other side of the bank, prolonging the torture but provoking the excitement. As he walked up he was stopped by a few old ladies who knew his mother; they remarked how handsome he had gotten and that he was a "big city boy now". He smiled and muttered pleasantries before excusing himself. 

He loitered outside the door of the cafe for so long he practically memorized the outside in the process. The Parisian seating, the big glass window decorated with the chalk drawings of animals and coffee cups and the weirdly bent letter box in the oak wood door. His feet kicked in and he plunged into the building, stopping in the queue that stretched to the door. He could hear the voices radiating from the queue, laughter and a bright beaming voice taking orders that made Derek's heart stop. It was deeper and raspier but it held the same quirks and peaks as the voice he knew. Palms sweating and heart beating, Derek stepped forward slightly in the queue. Bringing him to level with the soft drinks and cakes fridges. He pretended to peruse the pastries as he listened to the voices, he could make out the odd words and phrases and it mainly sounded like pleasant customer service talk with a personal edge. The women in the queue in front of him all picked up in laughter at once, startling Derek from his pastry haze. He looked over and caught the glimpse of the back of a head, one that was messing with the coffee machine. The hair was new. Dark brown hair stuck up from all ends, like it had been perfectly styled and had been tugged out of place as the day went on but as he turned around he looked almost the same. Those big brown eyes wide and smiling, his face slimmer and more angles but still dotted with moles and holding in place a big smile. Derek almost stopped breathing, it felt like a dream. He never thought he'd actually be here, back in Beacon Hills. Home and about a foot away from the Stiles he left. 

The huddle of women moved out from in front of the counter, smiling and waving to Stiles with their takeaway cups as they shuffled along. Derek stepped along, holding a bottle of water in his clammy hands, up to the counter. There he was standing in front of Stiles, who smiled at him as if he was just another customer. 

"Hey dude. What can I get you today?" Stiles beamed, fingers tapping on his little note pad.

"Erm, I'll take this," he fumbled with the water bottle before setting it down straight, "and a black coffee to sit in please." 

"No problem, buddy coming right up." Stiles scribbled onto the pad before handing it to the girl behind him. "That'll be 6$, please." Derek pulled out his wallet and handed the money over. "Hey, do I know you from somewhere? Your eyes are real familiar and I'm 100% sure I'd never forget eyebrows that impressive. I used to know someone with eyebrows like yours." His hand softly moved to his neck, fingers caressing a silver chain. "He left a long time ago, but damn he could say full sentences with those eyebrows." His hand fell from the chain back down to the counter. "I bet yours are pretty expressive there too." Derek raised a eyebrow, like he used too and Stiles laughed. "Just like that!" Stiles laughed. "You must be his twin or something, well a really buff twin. He wasn't as," he gestured to Derek's torso, "physically impressive and he had no beard but like, you never know. Derek could have grown a beard, i mean I last heard from him when he was 16. He could have a beard."

"Are you prattling on about Derek again?" The girl turned around, laughing and sliding his coffee across to Derek. 

"Hey, I will always prattle on about Derek Hale thank you very much. He's my long lost buddy." Stiles clutched at the chain on his neck and faked a swoon, laughing at the girl. Derek could feel the heat rising to his ears, he almost wished he'd left the hat on. That's when Derek noticed it. As Stiles was fiddling with the tray for his coffee, he noticed the chain that Stiles had been fiddling with had slipped out from under his Star Wars shirt. There on that chain was Derek's ring. The one he'd given Stiles all those years ago. 

"You kept it." Derek found himself saying before he could bite his tongue. 

"What?" Stiles stopped turning his head back from the napkins to Derek. 

"The ring I gave you. You kept it." Derek pointed to the chain. "Before I left, in the conserve. I gave it to you cause I didn't want you to forget me, because you were the reason I got up in the morning and I wanted you to see something and think of me." Derek could feel every word he'd wanted to say to Stiles before he'd left and the words he told himself before he went to sleep come tumbling out. Uncontrollably, in front of the slightly busy cafe and the other barista. "I didn't know if you'd keep it, I just wanted to give you some form of comfort. Like you had given me. But I had to leave, every move I made away from you made me want to run right back and play that video game you loved until 4 am or sit and watch those Scooby Doo reruns and eat your dads pancakes and have you complain about the fat levels." He looked up from his hands to see Stiles staring at him, jaw slack and his eyes red with tears dripping. "I should have called. Should have come home. Just every day it got easier not to call. I was scared by the end you wouldn't want to know, that you'd have forgotten me. Cause I'd never be able to forget you." Stiles fingers where loose around the ring.

"Derek. Jesus Christ, it's you." Stiles broke into a soft smile. "Allison, I'm gonna take my lunch break now." The girl barista, nodded slowly blinking away her tears. "Coffee?" Stiles raised up Derek's coffee and smiled.  

 

* * *

 

They sat in a booth towards the back of the shop, Derek's foot touching the inside of Stiles' ankle only slightly, keeping him anchored to reality and proving that this Stiles in front of him was in fact real. Stiles still talked with his hands, every word every phrase an animated story. Derek sipped his coffee as Stiles filled him in on the past 12 years. His dad had become the Sheriff after Claudia passed, Stiles had begun training to be a officer himself but he'd put it on hold whilst his Dad had gotten ill, and he'd just kept this job since. He wanted to go back but he wasn't ready.

"What about you hotshot? How was New York?" Stiles took a long drink of his hazelnut latte monstrosity. 

"I loved it, I did the whole college thing. Majored in History, began a Doctorate in American History last year, I'm hopefully carrying it on here in California. But yeah, I loved New York, so did Laura."

"Then why did you come back?"

"I don't know, I think it was just time. We'd already missed three births and my dad's 60th, Kate was no longer something we had to worry about. One day Laura came into my room and just said, 'I'm going home, are you coming?' and I came home." Derek cupped his coffee between his two hands blowing slightly.

"I thought about you every day." Stiles confessed. "I mean like I wore your ring around my neck like a 1950's cheerleader going steady. I wanted to count down the days but hell I didn't even know if you where coming back. My gut said you were. But the years kept going and you never came back. Kate got arrested and got life, and you still didn't come back. Literally last week I thought about giving up, but something told me, I don't know. That you'd be back sooner than I thought." Stiles shrugged. 

"I was always coming back. I just got lost on the way." Derek gave a weak smile. "I'd have always come back to you." Derek tentatively stretched his hand out and placed it over Stiles'. Stiles shuffled his hand around until his fingers hooked around Derek's. 

"I knew you would." Stiles pushed off his seat slightly and leaned across to Derek, hesitating a little before moving in to press a soft kiss tentatively on Derek's lips. He settled back into his seat and beamed. "We have a lot of catching up to do." 

"We definitely do." 

"Well we've got time, you're not going anywhere are you?"

"All the time in the world cause I'm not going anywhere."


End file.
